Veteran forwards Andrej Jakimovski, DJ Rodman help Washington State sweat out win over Stanford

PULLMAN – Washington State’s two most experienced players provided crucial baskets in the tense moments of a back-and-forth game to keep the Cougars ahead by a narrow margin.

Lifted by Andrej Jakimovski and DJ Rodman, the Cougars controlled a small lead for the final 14 minutes against Stanford. WSU had come out on the losing end in several tightly contested matchups earlier this season, but the team’s veterans made a number of must-have plays down the stretch and the Cougars hung on late, sweating out a 60-59 victory Saturday at Beasley Coliseum.

“They bailed us out, big time,” WSU coach Kyle Smith said of the forwards.

“It’s really rewarding to see Andrej and Rodman really step up and get us a (win). That’s what older guys do, they win at home.”

Jakimovski, a junior, shot 5 of 6 from 3-point range and scored a season-high 17 points. Rodman, the team’s lone senior, hit 4 of 7 3-pointers and scored 15 points. The two offset a sluggish shooting night from the rest of their teammates and combined for 12 points in the final 10 minutes as the Cougars (9-10, 4-4 Pac-12) turned back Stanford .

The Cardinal (5-12, 0-7), who never trailed by more than six points, were down by five with 2 minutes remaining after Rodman hit a fast-break 3.

But Stanford held WSU scoreless the rest of the way and set up a dramatic finish. Cardinal post Maxime Raynaud’s driving layup with 22 seconds left cut WSU’s lead to one point. Jakimovski was fouled on the inbounds play, then missed the front end of a 1-and-1, giving the Cardinal a chance to win at the buzzer.

“I have to make it. There’s no excuses,” Jakimovski said. “The final possession, we did really good. We let him shoot, but we got the win. There’s things we can do better, of course, but we got the win and that’s the most important thing.”

Raynaud misfired on a 3-point attempt with 4 seconds left. Stanford forward Brandon Angel caught the air ball but couldn’t get a clean attempt off from under the rim.

“They didn’t tip it in at the end and I was very thankful that didn’t happen,” Smith said.

Jakimovski entered the game shooting 4 of 21 from 3-point range in seven games this season. He missed WSU’s first 10 games with a foot injury, but it appears the North Macedonia native has rediscovered his shooting touch.

“We’re finally seeing the real Andrej,” Rodman said.

Rodman is on a career-best stretch of performances. He is averaging 15 points and shooting 55.5% from beyond the arc over the past six games.

“I think he’s an all-conference player,” Jakimovski said of Rodman. “He’s been playing really good the last six, seven games. He showed it today. When we needed buckets, we went to him. I think we’re going the right way to have a good season. After this win, it feels great to finally be able to get a win like this. We were losing a lot of games … at the end of games.”

WSU is 2-6 in games decided by single digits. But the Cougars are riding a three-game winning streak after completing a weekend sweep of the Bay Area schools.

“We just had to gut one out,” Smith said. “We took an incredible shot from them, and we were able to find a way with (Mouhamed Gueye) in foul trouble and no (TJ Bamba).”

Gueye, a 6-foot-11 sophomore and the Cougars’ No. 2 scorer, picked up three fouls in the first half. He finished with seven points. True freshman 7-footer Adrame Diongue played well in his place, with four offensive rebounds in 10 minutes. Bamba, WSU’s leading scorer (15.1 ppg), missed his second consecutive game with a hand injury. Smith is hoping to get Bamba back on the court next week.

True freshman guard Kymany Houinsou scored six points and had four rebounds in place of Bamba. No other Cougars had more than four points. WSU shot 22 of 48 (45.8%) from the field and 10 of 27 (37%) on 3-pointers – excluding Rodman and Jakimovski’s 3-pointers, the Cougars went 1 of 14 .

WSU matched a season low with six turnovers .

“We were patient,” Smith said. “Taking care of the ball is always No. 1 for us. We’ve been really improving as the year has gone on. I think the last five games we’ve been at about 10 turnovers per game, and we were cooking at 16 a game earlier in the year. They’re coming together and playing smarter on that end of the floor.”

Stanford shot 43% from the floor and 7 of 18 (39%) on 3s en route to its fifth consecutive loss. Raynaud paced the Cardinal with 16 points. Forwards Harrison Ingram and Spencer Jones added 14 apiece. Ingram, the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year last season, was held scoreless after halftime.

The Cardinal led for 14 minutes in the first half and were up by as many as eight points with about 9 minutes left . WSU charged back, cutting the deficit to three at halftime after Rodman converted a three-point play on a drive to the basket. Jakimovski made three 3-pointers during a 4-minute stretch midway through the second half to put the Cougars on top by six.